Day After Day
by XIIIAnonymous
Summary: In which Roppi has a routine and Tsuki always forgets. Hachimenroppi!IzayaxTsukishima!Shizuo, some Tsugaru!ShizuoxPsyche!Izaya in the second chapter.
1. Twisted Ladder

Sometimes I wonder if humans realize that they're even staring.

I never stare without being fully in control of the fact that I'm most likely making the other person feel awkward and confused. I'm also well aware that the fact that I stand on a street corner for two hours every morning might seem odd to most people. However, it's not like I cause a public disturbance- this is merely a part of my routine. Isn't it odd that a man goes to the same coffee shop every morning, orders the same thing every morning, and then sits and stares at the same person every morning? I think so.

But he's unimportant, just as the rest of those horrible creatures are, just as-

"Excuse me, do you know how to get to the nearest convenience store from here...?"

The voice is soft and timid. My first thought is that it's annoying to hear a voice that could be strong and powerful be that demure, but I don't turn around as I answer the stranger's question.

"Walk down this street here, turn left, turn right."

"Ah...thank you very much."

Not offering a reply, I go back to my people watching. I hate humans, the whole lot of them, but this observing helps with what I do for a living, and so I watch, every day. I see all examples of their weakness and malignance. I overhear conversations that would most likely be better left unsaid. If I imagine, then I can touch, smell, taste the rotten disease that's infected this species since they first walked the planet.

I still don't look as the man heads away. I probably won't see him again.

:

When the same thing happens the next day, him asking directions for the convenience store, I actually do turn around.

As humans go, he's very easy on the eyes. However, I've learned over the years that the worst sort are always the people like this, the people who you take one glance at and think that maybe, maybe you can trust them. Blonde hair is slightly tussled from the wind, crimson eyes that are the exact shade of my own framed by dark-rimmed glasses. A white scarf is wrapped his neck, which immediately strikes me as abnormal, because it's the middle of August. His clothing (what looks like a bartender's outfit) suggests that he either has an important job or a weird sense of style.

But it doesn't matter to me either way. He's just a passing face, after all.

"Don't you remember from yesterday?"

"Yesterday?" He seems puzzled. "Yesterday...oh, yeah! Um, I forgot again, sorry..."

I sigh. "If you're looking for an excuse to talk to me, you should at least ask for a different place each time."

A flash of indignation, and then it is gone. "I honestly forgot. I'll try to remember this time, I promise."

"Alright," I say, and repeat my instructions from the day before. He nods his thanks and is gone yet again.

I can't shake the feeling that he'll be back tomorrow.

:

It turns out that the feeling is right. Much to my chagrin, he asks for the convenience store for a third time.

"No. I'm not telling you. Go find someone else to hit on."

"I...I'm not trying to hit on you! I just get lost and forget directions easily!"

"Don't tell me that once you got to where I said to turn, you had to ask for directions again, every time."

His embarrassed silence is all I need. "It's like I said."

"Rather unfortunate for you, then."

"I'm Tsukishima," he says, after a moment of hesitation. I scoff; I haven't even asked for his name. "But you can call me Tsuki."

"Hachimenroppi. Don't even think of giving me a nickname."

"Roppi-san, are you here every day?" Through the curiosity in his tone I notice that he's ignored me and christened me with the most idiotic variation of my name that I've ever heard. Well, two can play at that game.

"Yes, every day, Tsukishima. But don't think that makes me your tour guide."

He seems put off that I won't call him by his cutesy label, which sounds like something a pedophile posing on the internet would name their fabricated identity. "I didn't mean it that way. I just see you here a lot, that's all."

"There are a lot of people that come here every day."

Silently I can feel his amiable agreement with my statement, but he replies anyways, "You're just the most noticeable, I think. But," he adds, suddenly looking startled, "I don't mean that in a bad way, Roppi-san."

I laugh. It's true, I am the most noticeable human here. Short black hair is normal enough, and even sharp red eyes aren't automatically catching, but my clothes are enough to make some of the more uptight humans turn back twice to make sure they've seen properly. I can't help but love the black coat with striking red fur around the cuffs and collar. It's also a part of my routine, and thinking about that, it hits me just how unjust I was in thinking that Tsukishima was an oddity for wearing winter clothes during summertime.

"Don't you need to get to the convenience store?" I won't lie about my impatience for him to leave. Something in his presence is unsettling, different.

His eyes light up. "Oh, yes! Will you remind me how to get there, Roppi-san? I know for sure it'll stick today."

I doubt that, but parrot my advice anyways. "Walk down this street, turn left, and then turn right. Try to look for landmarks you recognize so it'll be less of a struggle next time."

"Ah, I see. Thank you very much!"

:

The next day I'm met with anxious red eyes.

"Roppi-san, I...I didn't remember..."

The exasperated sigh that escapes my lungs at this is entirely not my fault. "Today, I'm walking there with you." Anything to get this guy off my back. Irritatingly enough, he seems excited at the prospect. "What do you possibly need every day at the convenience store?"

"I bring flowers to my brother, in the hospital, and I also get the snacks he likes," Tsukishima explains. "I can do it all in time before work, so I don't mind."

"What do you do for work, anyways?" Or rather, who would even hire someone with absolutely no sense of direction?

"I work at a business that loans money to people. I have a desk job, since I don't think I'd be too useful at trips to foreign places..." The blonde chuckles sheepishly. I find I don't dislike the sound of his laughter, as I do with most others.

The job makes sense for him, and there are worse things, as occupations go.

"That's nice."

"What do you do, Roppi-san?"

"Here we are," I say, avoiding the question. We've arrived at the rather good-sized store. "Think you can find it tomorrow?"

A flustered look crosses his features. "Oh, I...I didn't realize it, but I was really concentrated on talking to you, so I didn't pay attention."

In all honestly, I should have expected this, and the half-hearted glare I send him is entirely not my fault.

:

"Are we friends?"

I raise an eyebrow. "Not going to ask for directions first, Tsukishima?"

"I brought you this," he says, offering me a coffee from the cafe across the street. I can't help but feel mildly surprised, reaching out to accept it.

"Thanks, I guess. And to answer your previous inquiry, no, we are not."

"Why?"

I blink. Tsukishima has a strange habit of asking far too many questions, and at things any other human would have just left alone. "Friends are people who have a mutual agreement to leech off each other."

"I've never heard that definition," he argues.

"Because you're naive," I retort without missing a beat.

"You really don't like people, do you, Roppi-san...?"

Has he just figured that out now? "Humans are disgusting creatures. They're selfish and don't care about anything other than themselves."

"You're one too, though."

"Yes," I agree. Obviously.

The blonde looks away. "Is...is that why you have scars on your wrists?"

"Exactly, Tsukishima." He didn't expect me to be so open about it, I can tell- his scarlet gaze speaks his shock as clearly as a glass windowpane. I don't remember ever being that yielding with my emotions. I've learned how to let my windows fog up until even I can't see inside. "When did you see?"

"When you took the drink, I saw down your coat sleeve...is that why you wear it all the time?"

"Hah. Do you wear that scarf all the time because you have scratches all over your neck?"

"No, this is just important to me."

"And I just like this coat. Alright?"

The conversation ends, but I can still feel his dubious stare.

:

"Everyone got sick at the office," Tsukishima tells me the next day. I don't understand why this makes him as nervous as he looks until he continues, "so I'm the only one they can send on this business trip. I have to leave this afternoon."

"You're afraid of getting lost and messing up?" He nods frantically. "Alright, just don't freak out. You had no problem asking me for directions, right? Just do that a lot."

"But what if people get mad at me?"

"As long as you get directions, then I don't think it matters, Tsukishima."

"But..." He winces, staring intently at the ground. "I don't like it when people get mad at me."

Of course he wouldn't. That's just the type of human he is, one of the ones always seeking approval, always fearful of making a mistake. I won't bother listing all the reasons why he just shouldn't care. "Most people are nice about it, don't worry."

He doesn't appear any more relieved. "Roppi-san, do you have a cell phone?"

"No," I reply, and I'm not even lying. I don't have any use for a phone aside from work related purposes, since I don't have 'friends', and so I generally take advantage of the pay phones that can be found all over the streets when I need to talk to someone. I hate phones. I'd much rather talk face to face, heaven forbid the activity known as 'texting'. It's so easy to deceive when the other person can't see your face.

"Ah..." Tsukishima is predictably disappointed. "Well, just in case you want to talk, this is my number." He offers me a slip of paper; something about this is just so comical I want to reject him, but I take it anyways.

"My, so forward, Tsukishima. Giving me your number already?"

I admit it, I might have a slight thing for teasing him. His cheeks flush a light pink, eyes averted, and sometimes he even begins to stutter as he vehemently denies whatever I've said. "I-I'm not trying to make a move on you, I swear, I just..." The rest of what he's trying to tell me fades away, his teeth trapping his bottom lip in a worried gesture.

I have to stop myself from thinking that it's adorable.

:

The next day, I realize ten minutes into my two hour observance just what it is that's missing from my routine.

:

I buy a phone.

It's a pitiful move, and I've only known Tsukishima for a week, but he's already fitted himself into my daily activity. I consider calling before concluding that he might be in the middle of something, and I do something that I never in my life would have imagined myself doing before.

_Hello, Tsukishima? This is Hachimenroppi._

The reply comes a couple minutes after my first text is sent. **Roppi-san! I thought you said that you didn't have a phone?**

_I lied, of course. _I don't want to let him know that it was because of him I went out and purchased one of these things.

**Haha. What's up?**

Hm? He's not even mad? I might have been offended, had I been in his place. I stumble over what to say next. _How have you been doing with getting lost?_

This reply isn't as fast as the others, and I'm only a little irritated that this makes me smile. **I've gotten lost a lot...but everyone has been very kind to me about it.**

_I told you they would be._

**Yeah. I can't wait to get home, though. I don't like being away from everyone. :(**

I frown in confusion at the combination of a colon and a parenthesis symbol. What is that supposed to mean? I brush my lack of knowledge off. _Don't get too homesick, though. Make sure you get your job done._

**I will! I just got out of a meeting, actually. ^^**

Again with the strange language that I don't understand. I stare for a moment, and apparently I'm not fast enough, because my new electronic buzzes with another message while I'm still trying to make sense of it.

**Roppi-san, if I ask you a strange question, would you laugh at me?**

_What? Are you going to ask me out already, Tsukishima? _My lips quirk into a smirk as I envision his visage erupting into that embarrassed expression.

**No! I just wanted to know what your opinion on love was. It seems like you would give me an honest answer.**

Love is an area that I don't pride myself in having a lot of knowledge on- and I'm sure if I stated my opinion on it outright I would be attacked by a horde of teenage girls. _What do you think of hate?_

**It's stupid. ^^;**

Honest and naive as always. _Hate doesn't lie. Love does. Does that make sense? This is cynical of me, but both of them are just hormones. _I feel that it was too blunt and harsh of me to say it like that, but Tsukishima was the one who asked, after all.

**I see. Thank you for your answer, Roppi-san. :) **

**I'm coming home in two days and I'll have the day off. Would you like to go out somewhere with me when I get back? **

**As friends, not anything like that! **

The third text pops into my inbox before I can reply with something suggestive. I hesitate over my answer. Agreeing would mean that we had some sort of connection, but I can't find any trick to it, any catches.

_Sure. I'll be where I usually am in the morning._

**Okay! I'll be there!**

A thought leaps into my mind: why am I doing this?

:

**Roppi-san, I don't know what to do. ;m; **I'm greeted with the text as I get ready for bed.

_What's wrong? _I inquire, climbing underneath the sheets, the light already out, sighing blissfully while the day's tension leaves my body.

**I think this girl is trying to get me to sleep with her and I don't know how to say no without sounding rude...**

_Is she attractive? Why wouldn't you say yes? _I know how humans are. But I find it hard to picture Tsukishima on top of some girl, pleasuring her while being utterly dominant, and so I replace the image with him on his back, being driven into, deportment a mixture of sheer gratification and pain as I-

Luckily his reply is there to stop my thoughts from going any further.

**Well, I already like someone. **

Interesting. He doesn't seem particularly lovelust-struck to me, at least not for the instances that we talk.

_Do they know about it?_

**No, haha. Oh, but I have to go now. Goodnight, Roppi-san! :)**

_Goodnight, Tsukishima._

I'm left alone with my less than innocent thoughts- it's a fight to capture sleep.

In the morning, my boxers are sticky with something other than sweat, and I determine that Tsukishima's existence itself is just why I hate humans.

:

There's only a day until the cause of my troubles returns. We don't text the entire time as I get a lot of my work done, but I'm distracted. Why would I have a sex dream about Tsukishima, of all people? I've had them before, since I am, after all, a human male. I hadn't realized that my body had taken such a liking to the blonde's prominent looks, though.

Well, I think to myself, there's no law saying that I have to do anything about it.

So I forget about it.

Almost.

:

"Roppi-san!"

I watch as Tsukishima runs up to me, scarf flapping out behind him. He's way to excited, and he'll probably trip if he's running that fast-

And, there he goes.

"Are you alright?" I ask, helping him up, not being able to help the amused tone my voice has taken on. His glasses have fallen off, making his ruby eyes even more distinct. He stands up and automatically sways on the spot.

"Sorry," he mumbles, looking the definition of guilt. "I don't see too well without my glasses, um...do you see them anywhere?"

I peer behind him and spot them instantly; unfortunately, he must have sat on them, because they're bent beyond repair. After I tell him this, his distress only increases. I know he won't go be able to do much of anything right now, because his eyes can't even focus on my face without the lenses. Was it even possible to have that bad of eyesight without being classified as blind? Hm.

"I'm so sorry, Roppi-san! I guess I won't be able to do much to entertain you today, huh..." He bites his lip.

"It's okay. I'll lead you around." I find myself saying. Wait...what? That was the perfect opportunity to ditch him!

It's too late to take it back. "Really? You will?"

I sigh, resigned. "Yes, I will."

We end up walking around the city, me holding onto his hand firmly so he couldn't wander off to get lost anywhere. I'm sure that it looked odd to other humans, but I was honestly just doing something like a father would do for their child.

It does feel nice, however. I can understand why couples are so desperate to hold hands in public. Tsukishima's palm is warm, but not to the point of sweating, and his fingers curl comfortably around mine. We don't speak at all. I think ironically that it's very human of me to simply enjoy someone's company like this, but he doesn't seem all that bothered by the quiet, either.

Silently, after we have been moving our feet for two hours, there is an agreement to turn back.

The motion of return to the street corner where we met is filled with talking. Tsukishima asks me questions about my life, my likes, my dislikes. I'm not asking anything in return, but his keep coming. The question about my line of work comes up again, but I take that opportunity to point out that this is rather like a date, and that sufficiently distracts the blonde enough to ask something different.

"Have you ever dated someone, Roppi-san?"

"No. 'Dating' is like being 'friends', only there's sex involved."

"I don't think so...when you have someone special, there's a connection there that friends don't have."

Naive as always. I give a noncommittal hum, not wanting to discuss it.

"We're back, by the way." We stand at the street corner, and I'm just about to ask what's wrong when he speaks again. "If...if this is a date, then, can I walk you back to where you live?"

I can't say I'm not stunned at the bold statement. He waits patiently for my answer, standing close enough for his eyes to be able to focus on my reaction. "Alright," I finally agree, and he smiles widely.

His next audacious move comes at the doorstep to my apartment, when the kiss he's probably aimed at my cheek lands on my mouth instead.

I'm not prepared for the warm feeling that spreads through my stomach. After he recognizes what he's just done, Tsukishima jerks away, stammering out pleas for forgiveness. Against my better judgment, I ignore all of them and pull him back for another moment of contact. He inhales sharply, eyelids sliding shut, before he begins to respond.

I've made up my mind; I won't fight this lust any more.

Thankfully he waited until I unlocked my door to drop the bomb on me, and I grope blindly behind myself for the doorknob, twisting it around and pushing the door open. I tug him inside the building after me. He follows without complaint, even shoving the object closed again after we're both inside. A noise of shock rumbles in his throat as I desperately pin him against the door, tilting my head at just the right angle; for such a tall man, Tsukishima is surprisingly weak.

It's much, much too fast, tongues and breath and everything else mingling as clothes fall to the floor until I have him writhing against it, but I can't bring myself to care as his saliva lubricates my fingers and aids my hurried preparations, not wanting to wait any longer. All the blonde can do is gasp, gasp, drop his head on my shoulder as I fuck him, the door shuddering behind us.

Somehow, even after we're done, I manage to carry him to my bedroom for another round.

:

He wakes up first.

I know this because I'm woken up by his arms cuddling me closer, as if we're 'lovers'- and maybe we are, maybe we aren't. I'm not sure if this is a one-time thing. I don't think about that as I curl nearer to his warmth. Even if it is just lust, this doesn't feel too bad.

"I don't think lust applies to cuddling," Tsukishima says honestly.

The only possible conclusion is that I've said something out loud. I think on his words for a moment, attuned to his quiet breathing.

"No," I concede. "I suppose it doesn't."

:

"You're a writer, aren't you?"

I'm right in the middle of eating some much needed breakfast when the blonde comes up behind me, holding my latest manuscript in my hands. It had to have been pretty strenuous for his eyes to skim through it.

"The characters in this story all get a happy ending, and they're all good people."

Grumpy that he's found me out, I mumble into my cereal. "So?"

He pauses. "I'm sorry I read it without asking."

"It's alright," I say. It does bother me that he's seen into my inner fantasy while knowing that it's me (I write under a pen name), but I figure he's already seen enough of me last night.

When he starts to make scrambled eggs on my tiny stove, squinting to see what he's doing, I'm fairly hopeful that this might become a part of my routine, too.

I realize that I'm staring.

:::::

….well.

Well then.

8D'' I don't know where this came from. Longest thing I've ever written guys! Wow, pfff. I blushed writing that sex scene because I am definitely not good at sex scenes. Lawl.

Thanks for reading~. If you spot any mistakes, please let me know. :'o


	2. Double Helix

"What's that supposed to mean?"

The demand was made suddenly, and it took my eyes a few moments of blinking behind my newly replaced lenses to make out the text on the glowing screen of Roppi's cell phone.

**r u busy 2morrow? u shuld come w/ me 2 meet sum1! :3**

The first question that popped into my mind was 'who is he texting?' Roppi hated illiteracy of any kind, so it sort of surprised me that he'd even bother trying to make sense of that. Still, I translated for him easily.

"They're asking you if you're busy, and they want you to go with them to meet someone tomorrow."

"Hm." He frowned, and hurriedly typed out a reply. He wore a concentrated expression as he searched for the right keys to press. I smiled fondly. Roppi looked up just in time to see me do it and scowled, shifting around on his plush green sofa. With all the red and green, I was constantly reminded of Christmas, and that feeling perfectly described how I felt around Roppi most of the time. I didn't think it had hit him yet that I'd slept with him and I came around to hang out even after the act was done.

It made me a little sad, his lack of trust. But, there was nothing I could really do except for be there.

I was actually going to ask him if he wanted to go meet my brother with me tomorrow, but I guessed that it could wait until the day after that. I was sure Tsugaru wouldn't take his cynical views as something bad, but as something different to think about, just like I do. A lot of what Roppi says has stock in it; a lot doesn't. I wished he could see that not all humans were bad, but he still had his reasons for thinking they were.

"Tsukishima, you're spacing out."

"Oh," I said, straightening up in my chair. I would have been sitting on the couch with him, but seeing as he was working on his next book, there were papers and pencils and dictionaries all over the tiny room, spread out haphazardly. The only time Roppi allowed himself to be messy was when he was writing a book, and I was the only one who really knew. A big part of me thrilled at that. "Were you asking me a question, Roppi-san?"

"Yes, but I suppose it doesn't matter."

"N-...No, tell me," I insisted, guilty at having not been paying attention.

"Well, I was going to ask you if you wanted to come with me to meet this person. I don't know how my cousin got my number, but I guess I can go with him."

Oh, his cousin? It seemed like he expected me to say that I couldn't, but I didn't have to work tomorrow since it would be the weekend, and I would have considered taking a few hours off anyways. "I'll go with you, Roppi-san."

Looking mildly taken aback, he merely nodded and went back to his writing, brow furrowing in thought. I concealed my next grin within my scarf, content to watch in silence, seeing an artist at work.

:

Psyche was nothing like his cousin. Exuberant and happy, he waved hello to strangers and laughed loud, skipping up to us cheerfully.

"Hello, Tsuki-kun! It's very nice to finally meet you! C'mon, let's go already, I don't want to keep him waiting!"

I tripped over my own greeting, and then glanced at Roppi. He had talked about me?

"Only once," he muttered, as if reading my mind and wanting to get rid of any assumptions. "Psyche has a good memory."

"That's because you never talk about anyone, so I have to remember the one person you do mention, right?" He giggled at the impassive face that his cousin held up. A flush of crimson flooded my cheeks at what his statement implied, and I saved Roppi from having to make up some excuse by asking where we were going. "Oh, to the hospital right near here. The person we're meeting is really ill. But he handles it so well! I admire him a lot!" Psyche rambled on, grabbing both mine and Roppi's hands and taking off. Roppi looked irritated but allowed the contact. On the other hand, I'd only known Psyche for a couple minutes, and I was already tired out from his boundless energy. I wondered briefly- which one was the genetic trait, the excited air or the mellow one?

:

I still couldn't decide as Psyche led us to the hospital; of course it was the same building as the one Tsugaru was staying at. I should have realized, but my bad sense of direction was enough to convince me that there might have been another one in the area. Ahaha...

"How'd you even meet some guy in the hospital?" Roppi asked as we walked in through the sliding glass doors.

"Well, if you'd bothered to ask why I hadn't come to talk to you in forever, I fell and sprained my ankle! And I had to come here. That's how I met Tsu-chan!" He danced up to the front counter, the woman currently working looking like she recognized him, and exclaimed gleefully, "I'm here to see Tsu-chan, please!" Psyche was met with a quick smile and three visitor cards, two of which he quickly distributed. He ran off to the hallway to the left. "Tsu-chan, guess who I brought today?" could be heard even as he disappeared from sight.

Roppi sighed. "I'm sorry. He's always like this."

"It's okay," I said, slipping my hand into his. "I don't mind, Roppi-san."

I wondered why I was the one always blushing while he looked so firmly calm.

"We should probably get over there. Psyche is probably talking the sanity out of this 'Tsu-chan'." Roppi spoke matter-of-factly, eyes focused forward. I nodded my agreement and advanced to the room Psyche had run towards.

"-and then I went out to the store to buy some flowers for you, but they had lots of stuff and I got distracted! I'm sorry, Tsu-chan," Psyche's mournful narration met our ears as we turned the corner.

"It's alright, Psyche," reassured a deeper tone that sounded strangely familiar, "I can just look forward to the next time you visit even more, then."

I blinked. Sitting in the hospital bed was none other than Tsugaru, my older brother. Psyche was seated in a chair next to him, gripping his hand and oozing pure joy, appearing for all the world like he just wanted to crawl into Tsugaru's arms and cuddle.

Finally, he took his eyes off of Psyche and noticed Roppi and I. "Tsuki? I thought you said you couldn't make it today." He was pleased anyways, I could tell. His gaze slipped down to where our hands connected. "Then, this is Hachimenroppi? It's very nice to meet you."

Roppi relaxed at the polite aura. He had probably expected someone like his cousin, and I was glad that my brother wasn't among the humans that constantly had him bristling in annoyance. "A pleasure."

"Oh, so this Tsuki-kun is your brother, Tsu-chan? That's a weird coincidence." Psyche's mouth formed into an 'o' of surprise.

"It is," he agreed. Their loving smiles towards each other almost made my chest hurt.

I liked Roppi just the way he was, but it didn't make me wish any less that we could be a little like that.

:

"What's wrong with your brother, anyways?" Roppi asked later, when we were alone at his apartment again with him writing. It was rare that he asked questions about anything related to me, so I jumped to answer.

"He has a kind of heart condition, so he has to stay in bed most of the time. It just recently got worse, so the hospital decided to just have him stay there." I hesitated over my next statement. "Roppi-san, we are dating, right?"

For a moment, he just stared. "Where did that come from?"

"I...I just...wanted to know, I guess..." I trailed off uncertainly. "I mean, I never really asked you properly."

"I don't want to date," he said after a second of thought. My stomach dropped, and I tried to keep the sadness from showing on my face without much success. So he really didn't want to? I had thought that we were already dating, but... "I don't want to date you," he continued, seemingly frustrated at my reaction, "because I don't want you to feel obligated to be with me. Don't look so pathetic."

Slowly his words started to register in my mind. "So...you mean..."

"I mean whatever you think I mean, Tsukishima. Can you bring me that eraser over there?"

I obeyed, bringing the object to him, but didn't return to my previous seat. Instead I hovered over him, planning what I was going to say next. "I...I really like being with you, Roppi-san."

"...hm."

"I really do!"

"Tsukishima, do you know of a synonym for 'prostrate'?"

"What?"

"Not prostate. Prostrate."

"Oh…well, what does that mean in the first place?"

"Submit. Grovel. Surrender."

"Then, you just said three synonyms," I said, confused.

"Ah, right."

I realized a moment later that that had only been a smooth attempt at a subject change. If Roppi didn't want to talk about it, then...maybe I could think of something I could do? I bit my lip out of habit, thinking, thinking...

We hadn't kissed at all since that night about two weeks ago. It weighed heavily on my mind- maybe it did for him, too, as unlikely as that seemed. Taking a deep breath, already blushing from embarrassment, I tilted his chin upwards. Deep red eyes gazed up at me disinterestedly.

I covered his mouth with mine, leaning forward so far that he had to drop his manuscripts onto the small coffee table to allow for the space I was taking up. There was no visible response as I all but straddled him. Unfortunately, I lost my determination early on. What if I was doing this wrong, and he didn't like it? Maybe this hadn't been the best way to prove my intentions? What if he took it for simply lust, as he had the habit to, and pushed me away?

Even as I slowed down, beginning to think too much, Roppi pulled back and gave a slight exasperated sigh, returning to take charge. I hummed as his hands rose to lightly grasp my elbows, lips caressing mine in a way that made my brain hazy. I eagerly pushed closer when he prodded my closed mouth with his tongue, readily letting him in-

And then my knee slid on one of his papers.

My forehead collided with his painfully, both of us inhaling sharply at the sudden shock, out of breath from our previous activity. Instantly, my already flushed cheeks grew hotter.

"I-I'm so sorry, Roppi-san! I'm sorry!" Ah, this was so embarrassing... "I'm sorry!"

"Stop apologizing, it wasn't your fault," His tone was scolding, but as I peered closer, my breath caught at the sight of his tiny, amused smile. "You'll just have to try again," He dared me with narrowed ruby eyes.

"I'm sorry..." I said needlessly one more time, gaze dropping down to his mouth. Could I do it again? It was scary even to think about; I might have missed, I might have done any number of things, but the thing I really did not want to do was to be rejected. But now Roppi was asking for it, so...it would be okay, right? I met his eyes and gulped.

I touched lips with him again tentatively, eyelids shut, my hands gripping his shoulders. We gave little presses back and forth, all innocence and give-take-giving. It was me that stopped first, grinning.

"I like being with you whatever we do," I stated sincerely.

Roppi opened his mouth to reply, closed it again, and then simply nodded.

:

I didn't really like Sundays- there was that feeling all throughout the day that you'd eventually have to go back to work on Monday. My Sunday was made slightly better by the fact that I spent it with Roppi, a slowly forming habit for the weekends and Friday nights. We chose to walk through the city. My earlier fears were dispelled- as long as I was with Roppi, I didn't particularly care if we were officially going out or if we were gushing our feelings for one another.

"-just doesn't understand even when I tell him ten times!"

"Who, Tsukishima?"

I looked around at the sound of my name, spotting a couple of the guys I worked with walking past. Curiously I listened in on their conversation, dread piling in my gut.

"Yeah, that blonde guy! I don't know if he does it on purpose, but whenever we get assigned together, he never listens to what I say!"

"Man, that sucks, I hope I don't have to work with him."

I couldn't hear any more, but I didn't need to. It wasn't that I didn't listen, I just...couldn't remember. Couldn't remember anything unless it was repeated, written down, said more gradually. It probably was my fault, after all, even if I didn't do it on purpose.

A furious squeeze on my hand jerked me out of my thoughts.

Roppi was staring after the two men with simmering hate burning in his gaze, shoulders tensed.

"Roppi-san...?"

"They make judgments, and they don't even know you." His fierce glare turned to me. "You just go at a slower pace than them, Tsukishima." He huffed bitterly, shrugging his coat off and folding it over one arm, giving me plain view of the scars laced across his wrists. "Let's keep moving."

I began to amble along once again, but I couldn't stop glancing down at the signs of past injury. Questions lingered at the tip of my tongue, questions that I really wanted to be answered, but I didn't want to get too personal for him.

"I don't cut anymore, you know. The scars are from a couple years ago."

I jumped. "Ah...I see."

"If you want to ask me something, then just ask, Tsukishima," he said irritably.

"Um...were you trying to kill yourself, or just...?"

"I'd witnessed a rape earlier that day and I didn't want to think about how I could have been the person in either position. I did try to kill myself, but Psyche busted down the door and brought me to the hospital. How he got there so fast, I don't know."

The person in either position...? Rape? "I'm so sorry...but Roppi-san, you'd never rape someone," My tone reflected my surprise.

"But I could. I could decide right now that I'm sexually deprived and a madman, and go prey on the more helpless humans. Such as you." He frowned.

"But you wouldn't, would you?"

He sighed and turned his head to look me in the eye. "No, I wouldn't. I'm just saying that if I wanted to, I could."

:

If Roppi wanted to do anything, he could. I stared in amazement at the neatly stacked papers on his coffee table. He'd asked to go back and finish up the chapter he'd been working on so he could send his latest work to his editor, and I'd agreed, expecting to sit still for a long while. But he'd finished it up in two hours, and cleaned the whole place up while I had been out buying a drink.

"You really are a writer," I said seriously. I was met with silence. "Roppi-san?"

I travelled further into his living space, worried thoughts breaking out in my imagination. What if someone had broken in? It didn't look like it, but it was still possible. What if he'd tried to hurt himself again? We'd just talked about it, so maybe he'd decided that he didn't want to go through with his decision to live?

Thankfully, I found him sleeping peacefully on the couch, hands clasped together in his lap and his fur trimmed coat hanging over the chair I usually sat in while he wrote. Smiling, I made my way over to check on him; he breathed deeply, definitely fast asleep. He looked just fine without me, but...I could afford to be a little selfish sometimes, right? If I woke up early the next day I could make it to work on time, so I'd just stay the night with him.

Roppi's closet was almost bare of extra blankets. I found a tan comforter than seemed brand new and carried it over to him, spreading it out and sliding underneath it with him, praying that he wouldn't wake up.

I'd forgotten that Roppi was the type of sleeper that wouldn't be roused even if you yelled, but at the slightest movement, would jump into consciousness- which is what he did then. I froze and waited, heart thudding in my chest.

When all he did was offer me a tired yet expectant contemplation, I skeptically reached for him. He came willingly and allowed me to place my chin on top of his head.

"I suppose that there's a plus to not being all muscular. You make a nice pillow."

"...what's that supposed to mean?"

Roppi uttered a short laugh.

"Whatever you think it means, Tsukishima. Whatever you think it means."

:::::

Thank you all so much for the reviews! ;w;

I decided to write a follow up piece in Tsuki's POV because a few readers on here and on DA asked me to write more for these two. c: I tried to make Tsuki's voice different than Roppi's, but somehow, I'm surprised to see that I actually write better from Roppi's voice. :'o I think more like Tsuki, though, haha~. Also, I'm all for Tsuki as 'seme' and I view these two as reversible, but at this stage in the way I'm writing him he hasn't quite gained the confidence to take charge yet. xD

Thank you for reading! c:


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